The Reason Why
by mystarlesseyes
Summary: Takes place after the last Reaper's Game. Neku, Shiki, Beat, and Rhyme are all reunited and happy to have their lives back. But when Joshua shows up unexpectedly, they are shaken. Neku struggles with the reason why Joshua decided not to destroy Shibuya. SPOILERS are in this story. I do not own The World Ends With You or any of its characters, blah blah blah...
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Neku looked over the barrel of the gun as his shaking hands struggled to aim it straight. Across from him was Shibuya's Composer, Yoshiya 'Joshua' Kiryu, looking as calm and collected as ever. The Composer held his arm straight, his stance unwavering as he aimed at Neku. There was a pang in Neku's chest. What was it? Fear? Uncertainty? Or…was it just the bullet?

As his arms dropped at his sides, Neku kept his gaze focused on the Composer, his mind strangely calm in the situation of such panic and distress. _Why…why… _Neku struggled to form complete thoughts, but was too distracted by the pictures floating though his mind. Images of Shibuya, his home, his parents, his school, Shiki, Beat, Rhyme, all of his Psych pins, and Joshua…his headphones, the posters of his favorite artists, and the artwork of CAT, and Mr. Hanekoma…his mind reminded him of Christmas, when it was snowing and he would sit outside and catch the flakes on his tongue; of his first crush, and his first kiss, and his first heartbreak; of the funeral of his old best friend…

_Why…Joshua, just…why?_

The Composer smirked as he watched Neku crumple to the ground. All of the life slowly drained out of his deep blue eyes. In his state of dying, his mind was vulnerable. The Composer hardly had to try as he rummaged through Neku's most personal thoughts and feelings and memories. It was very entertaining to see what this boy had been through in his mere 15 years of existence. And yet, there was something in him that the Composer could not ignore.

As Neku drew in his last shaky breath, he finally realized what his dying meant. And he realized that he didn't care about himself dying at the hands of Joshua…that had been done before, anyways. No, this time, his death meant the death of Shibuya. The destruction of the city and all the people in it. Shiki, Beat, Rhyme…his parents…all of the strangers he ignored every day…they would all be gone, dead, because of Neku. Because of his death. Because he couldn't bring himself to just pull the trigger…

_I'm…sorry…Shibuya… _

His last thought was one of selflessness…the sadness for the loss of the city and of strangers rather than of his own life. Had Neku Sakuraba really changed that much in the past three weeks? And, was he right? Was humanity worth saving? The Composer wondered to himself as he lowered his arm and dropped the gun to the ground.

"Well…looks like you won," Sanae Hanekoma said, suddenly appearing beside the Composer.

"So it seems," the Composer sighed.

The skies of Shibuya grew dark as thunder clouds rolled overhead. As rain began to trickle down from the sky, Joshua hardly noticed. Being the Composer, he could have easily willed the rain not to fall on him, but he didn't. He allowed the rain, welcomed the wetness cooling him. It may as well have been like a farewell to his temporary humanity. In a few moments, he and Hanekoma would ascend to the Higher Plane and work out the details of this ending plan. Although, as each raindrop felt its way down his skin, the Composer grew more torn at his decision.

"Ready to go?" Hanekoma asked, clearly trying not to look at Neku's lifeless body.

"In a moment," the Composer said. He walked across the cold, hard ground to Neku's body. There was more blood than he imagined there would be. It grew in a pool beneath the body, and Joshua discovered that he was standing in it as well. Though the rain had watered it down, it was still a deep crimson. This boy…he had changed so much in only three weeks. He had learned to open up and trust other people…to trust his partner. Trust was not something that the Composer took lightly, even with his own proxy in his own game. But time was ticking. His actions would be discovered soon. He had to make a decision. "Okay, Hanekoma, let's go."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Neku Sakuraba woke from a deep sleep which seemed to last for an eternity. As his eyes struggled to open, he wondered if the past three weeks had just been a dream. It sure felt like it right now. But…no…he wasn't waking up in his own bed. He was waking up in the middle of the Scramble Crossing. Neku staggered to his feet and looked around the crowds of people walking by. His player pin felt electrically hot in his hand.

_No…no, I can't do this again…_

"What the hell!" Neku yelled into the air. Passing groups of people stared at him as they either stopped to ask what was wrong, or sped up their walking in fear of this distraught teenage boy. Neku crumpled to the ground, his hands clutching his head. He couldn't do this anymore.

"Hey, kid," a voice spoke. "Hey, are you alright?"

Neku stopped and looked up to see several people looking down at him. This was too many people…too many Players. Unless…they weren't Players. Neku stood up and faced the woman who was talking to him. He stared at her, realizing that, even with his player pin in hand, he couldn't read her thoughts. He couldn't see any Noise floating around either. Was he really-

"Hey, do you need a hospital or something?" the woman spoke again.

"N-no," he said, not yet used to the sound of his own voice. "I've just got a bad headache…"

Pushing his way through the crowds, Neku ran towards Hachiko. If he really was alive again, if they all were, they were to meet there. As he made his way through the rush of people, his eyes searched all around for a familiar face. But, within all the groups of people, all the laughing and talking, all the stragglers sitting alone, all of the children playing and eating ice cream cones, there was nobody that Neku was looking for.

_They're okay…they've got to be. They just haven't made it here yet…_

Neku took a seat in front of the statue of Hachiko, hoping the dog wouldn't mind his leaning against it. He waited, for what seemed like forever, as his headphones blew soft beats into his ears. He kept the volume lower than usual so he could hear if someone called him. After too long, a pair of feet stopped before him. Neku followed the feet up to their owner to see a strange girl staring down at him. But the unfamiliar girl was holding tightly onto something familiar.

"Piggy," Neku smiled as he pulled his headphones off his ears and let them rest around his neck. "Shiki."

"Yes," Shiki smiled in her new- old- body. She hugged the stuffed cat close to her chest, clearly nervous to see how Neku would react to her true form. He hardly seemed to care, now that he knew it was really her.

"Shiki," Neku repeated as he stood up and a smile grew on his face. He grasped her wrist and forced it away from holding the stuffed animal. Holding the cat with only one hand, she wrapped her arms around him. Neku tightened their embrace as he buried his face in her short black hair, partly because he was so happy to see her, and partly because he didn't want Shiki to see the tears in his eyes.

"I thought we would never see each other again," Shiki said, mimicking what he was thinking. She held him tight, too, putting her face to his chest.

"Yeah…so did I," Neku admitted. He forced himself to lock the tears away, at least for now, and he pulled away from the embrace. He held Shiki by the shoulders and smiled down at her.

"Neku! Shiki!" a small voice called. The two looked up to see a familiar blonde little girl waving at them. Rhyme approached with her older brother at her side.

"You guys are okay," Beat said with a smile. He pulled Neku under one arm and Shiki under the other. Rhyme ran up and embraced all three of them together. Shiki hugged Beat closely, too, and Neku put a hand over Rhyme's shoulder.

There they were, the four of them, reunited once again. And though they had never embraced like this during the game, they all wished that they had. They were glad to be back together again, to have a second chance, and to do things right this time. The four of them talked as they walked around Shibuya towards the ramen shop, and when a conversation ended, they would all just smile at each other, in pure appreciation of the friendships they shared.

As they picked up their chopsticks and began to slurp down the alarmingly hot noodles, they all realized how hungry they had been since waking up. And being alive for the first time in three weeks, they were all practically starving. When everyone had almost finished, they started up conversation again.

"So are we going to ask ourselves the obvious question?" Shiki spoke up as she set her chopsticks down.

"Ya mean why're we all alive again?" Beat offered, still working on his second bowl of curry ramen.

"When we technically lost…," Shiki continued. "Well, in one way or another, we all should be dead."

Neku looked over his bowl at her, and stopped slurping to set it down. "I guess, I was wondering that…but you guys don't really know what happened in the end," he said. The food he had just swallowed down seemed to do flips in his stomach.

"What do you mean?" Rhyme looked up.

"Well, Rhyme, you remember how after you…got erased," Neku choked the words out. "Mr. Hanekoma made a pin to keep you sort of alive…and Beat was looking after you, while he was…"

"I was a Reaper for a while, Rhyme," Beat admitted to his sister. "It was either that, or play in the game again…an' ya know, as a Reaper, I could keep ya safe in dat pin…"

"I understand," she said as she looked up at him. "Thank you, brother."

"Yo, you made plenty of sacrifices for me," Beat said, turning his attention to his curry again. "I love ya, sis. Ya know that."

"Hehe, I know," Rhyme giggled and wrapped her arm around her brother's.

"Well…Beat decided to become a Reaper, and I decided to play the game again…," Neku continued. "And…Shiki was taken as my entry fee."

Shiki's cheeks blushed a rosy color, and she shifted in her seat as she adjusted her glasses.

"And, my partner, Joshua…," Neku paused as he thought of how to word this next part. How is he supposed to put so much information into a simple explanation? How does he tell them that this kid was really the Composer of the whole game? He was the one who killed Neku in the first place…and despite everything he had done, Neku still considered him a friend…how is he supposed to admit that?

"He was a real prissy asshole," Beat said loudly as he picked up his bowl.

"Right, well put," Neku sighed. He had to admit, though, Joshua being a total prick was probably something he should have included in his explanation anyways. "Well…Joshua…it turns out, Joshua was the one who killed me."

"And you let him be your partner?" Shiki exclaimed.

"It just sort of…happened," Neku recalled. "Anyway, that's not the big thing. See, Joshua is actually the Composer of the game."

Shiki and Rhyme went a shade paler, and although Beat already knew this, so did he. Neku could understand that. Sometimes, thinking of the whole situation makes him sick, too. More than anything, though, it pissed him off. How Joshua had completely used him…

"But it was all for this bigger game going on between Josh and Shades, the Conductor," Neku continued as he stared down at the table, hiding his face in the collar of his vest. "Joshua used me as his proxy to play the games for him and help him win…the winner got to decide the fate of Shibuya. Shades wanted to keep Shibuya as it was…and Joshua wanted to destroy it."

"So that must mean…Joshua lost, right?" Shiki looked over at him, holding her stuffed cat so tightly that all of the stuffing was forced into its head.

"Shades lost…he was erased," Neku recalled as he shook his head. "Joshua won. But I couldn't…"

Tears stung in Neku's eyes as he remembered the moment just before Joshua handed him the gun.

**_"Whoever wins gets to be Composer of Shibuya," said Joshua, like it was all just some childhood game. "And gets to decide what to do with it…of course, I've already made my decision."_**

Neku had stood there, shocked, hurt, angry, and more pissed off than he had ever been. He was still trying to process what Joshua had revealed to him. Neku was nothing more than a pawn, a proxy…and Joshua felt no remorse for using him…for killing him…for putting him through three weeks of living hell. And in the end, even through feeling so much hatred towards the Composer, Neku couldn't bring himself to pull the trigger. Because, for some unknown reason, he still felt attached to Joshua…they were…friends…

"He shot me," Neku said, slowly pulling himself out of his thoughts and back to reality. "And he won. And he should have destroyed Shibuya, but…"

"He changed his mind," Rhyme whispered, her soft and delicate voice carrying over the silence of the rest of them.

"He must have," said Shiki after a long pause among the rest of them.

"But…I just don't know why he would," Neku admitted. He remembered dying again, at Joshua's hand…Joshua's gun. And as all his thoughts and memories raced through his mind, the only thing he could think was the same thing he was thinking now…_why? _


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Neku's parents hadn't noticed his three week absence from, well, life. That was expected, though. When people who win the Reaper's Game come back to life, their death must be erased from history. It was a strange concept, and left Neku wondering how many people had disappeared from the world and then come back, their absence totally unnoticed. That being noted, he didn't realize this until his mother's surprised face when Neku raced through the door and hugged her.

"I've never seen you so excited about meatloaf before," she said, taken aback by her son's sudden affection. Being a teenage boy, he had sort of outgrown giving hugs and kisses to his mother.

"It's not the meatloaf, mom," Neku said as he pulled away from his mother. "I just love ya, that's all." He flashed a smile, which she returned to him.

"I love you too, sweetie," she said. "Not that I'm complaining, but why the sudden outburst of affection?"

Neku thought that he should say something. Something about how he appreciated life more now, ever since surviving the game…that he was happy to be alive, and that Shibuya was still intact…but anything he thought of saying would just sound crazy. He just smiled and shrugged as he walked off to his room.

Among the piles of the clothes, unknowingly clean or dirty, cluttering the floor, the CDs and notebooks and pencils scattered around on the desk, random stacks of tin pin magazines lying around, a bookshelf stacked full of manga and school books, along with a binder full of photos and sketches, and a blanket hanging off the edge of the bed, Neku found his sanctuary. In his room, his messy, cluttered room, Neku truly felt like he was home again. Without changing out of his clothes, he flopped onto his bed, inhaling the scent of the sheets what was a mixture of laundry soap and his own musky scent.

He almost drifted off to sleep, but the smell of his mother's dinner cooking pulled him out of the drowsy state. Neku stood up and rubbed his eyes, smiling again, for no apparent reason other than because he was alive. He walked over to his window and looked out at the darkening sky, mentally tracing the lines of the buildings and skyscrapers.

"My, my, don't you look happy," said a cold, familiar voice from behind him. "How very…un-Neku of you."

Neku froze at the sound of the voice. He knew immediately who it was.

_That voice…_

That voice belonged to the person who had ended his life…twice. The person who killed Neku, just so that he could make him a proxy in a game that was so much bigger than he could understand. That voice belonged to the Composer of Shibuya; a god disguised as a boy. The person who had used Neku like a pawn in a game of chess, used him only to get what he wanted. The person who befriended Neku, who opened up his world a little more and gained his trust and respect…only to rip it all apart.

Anger rippled through Neku's body, filling his head and pulsing through his veins. His fists tightened as he turned around to face the Composer.

"What…where…the hell…," Neku struggled for words as he shook. It took all of his self control not to punch Joshua in the face and wail on him until he was a bloody mess. It would be easy to do; Joshua was surprisingly vulnerable when he was in his human form. Neku remembered that from their many battles with the Noise during that week.

"Calm down, dear," Joshua giggled. "Don't want you to pop a blood vessel now."

_You asshole…you prissy little arrogant asshole…I'm going to hurt you, I- __**breathe. Just breathe, Neku…**_

"Ungh!" Neku yelled as he gripped his head and stumbled a little. "You can't just imprint me like that…especially when I know you're doing it!"

"It was worth a shot," Joshua shrugged. "But you really should calm down. We don't want to cause a scene for your mother to deal with."

His mother? Neku had almost forgotten that they were in his room, and to get in there, Joshua had to get past his mom. How did he manage to do that?

"Well, when I told your mother that I was a dear friend of yours, she practically begged me to come in," Joshua giggled. "Oh, and she invited me to stay for dinner."

"You imprinted her, too," Neku lowered his voice, though he was still just as angry.

"Of course not," the Composer smirked. "I just used my natural charm."

"There is nothing _natural_ about you," Neku muttered. He had calmed down more, though he was still angry.

"Neku, why do you resent me so much?" Joshua asked, moving closer to him.

"You're kidding, right?"

"Okay, so I already know," Josh shrugs. "But it's more natural to have you say it out loud I suppose."

_As opposed to you reading my thoughts? You psychopath…_

"Neku! You and your friend come for dinner," his mom called from kitchen.

"You…I can't believe you got her to like you," Neku muttered as he crossed the doorway. Joshua giggled and followed behind him.

"Mrs. Sakuraba, this is the most exquisite meat I've ever tasted!" Joshua gushed as they ate. "The seasoning is just brilliant."

Neku nearly choked on his water, but managed to cough the feeling of disgust away. Joshua was just too…out there. But of course, Neku's mother loved it.

"Oh, thank you Josh," his mom smiled as she blushed. "It's really just an old recipe that I added my own little twist on."

Joshua made Neku nervous. His stomach was twisting up, but he forced himself to swallow down the food so that he wouldn't upset his mom. Ever since the games, he had taken many pieces of advice with him. _Trust your partner…_ That one rang through his head at this moment, and it was his own thought, not Josh imprinting him. And Neku did, he did trust Joshua…he just didn't understand him, and he hadn't forgiven him.

"So, Neku, where did you and Joshua meet?" his mother asked.

"Uh, at the…mural, in Udagawa," Neku answered, which was technically the truth. He decided not to mention the part about Joshua shooting him in the chest…

"Yes, we began discussing art and music, and found ourselves with many mutual interests," Joshua said. Neku cringed at the way he talked, the words he used.

"Oh, how nice," she smiled. "Well, Neku, I'm glad to finally meet one of your friends."

"Uh huh," Neku muttered.

He knew what his mother really meant was that she was glad he _had_ friends. Honestly, he couldn't remember the last time he had brought home a friend. Elementary school, maybe? It had definitely been a long time, and having an antisocial child was hard on his mother, who was a regular social butterfly. Maybe that was why she and Joshua seemed to be getting along so well. Joshua was the smart, witty, socially competent boy that his mother never got to have.

The three of them had finished eating ten minutes ago, and Joshua was still talking to his mom. They were both enthralled in a conversation, Joshua was saying something about his family and Italy, clearly in the process of spinning a lie.

"So you see, because of my studies and all, I decided to stay here in Shibuya while mother and father enjoy their business trip," Joshua shrugged as he smirked. "So it seems like I'll be staying in the lonely apartment all by myself for the next three weeks."

"Oh, nonsense!" his mother exclaimed. "You are welcome to stay here as long as you want! We have an air mattress that we can set up in Neku's room."

This time, Neku did choke, and it took quite a bit more coughing for him to be able to breathe again. _No, mother, you've got to be kidding me._

"As lovely as that would be, I hate to intrude," Josh said, his hands raised. He glanced over at Neku and flashed an evil smirk.

"No, honey, I insist," his mother said as she stood up. She began to collect the dishes from the table, but was interrupted by Joshua.

"Please, allow me," he said as he took the dishes from her. "And I suppose, if you insist, Mrs. Sakuraba. Neku, you wouldn't mind a roommate for a few weeks, would you?"

Neku didn't answer. He stood up and took his own plate and cup to the dishwasher. Joshua closed in behind him, getting uncomfortably close.

"I'm a great roommate, I promise," he giggled.

"Ugh…uh," Neku backed away and moved across the kitchen as Joshua continued to put away the dishes.

"If you don't mind me staying here tonight," Joshua continued talking to Neku's mother. "It is getting pretty late. Tomorrow I'll stop by my place to get some clothes and things to bring over."

"Oh, that's perfectly fine," she gushed. She was a little too excited over Neku's 'friend.'

_He's staying here for __**weeks**__?! We're not running a freakin hotel…_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Neku was too upset about how easily Joshua had weaseled his way into his home and befriended his mother. Joshua couldn't help it, really, he was just a sociable, persuasive person…and a manipulating, mind reading, imprinting prick.

"There, your bed is all set up…," Neku said dryly as he tossed a blanket onto the air mattress on the floor. "Since apparently you're staying here for _weeks._"

"Oh, don't be so upset about it, Neku," Joshua sighed. "And, well…I don't suppose I could sleep in your bed, could I?"

"W-what?" Neku felt his face turning red.

"Hee hee," Joshua giggled. "Not with you in it, silly. Can you imagine the look on your dear mother's face if she discovered such a scene?"

"N-no," Neku stuttered. He turned away and pulled off his vest and shirt. "My bed is my bed for a reason…because it's _mine_."

Joshua sighed in disappointment, and looked up at the shirtless Neku. A wave of heat washed over his face, but he refused the initial reaction to turn away. "Ahem," he coughed, trying to regain his composure. "Could I at least borrow something to sleep in? I would die if my shirt got all wrinkled up."

"Ugh," Neku sighed heavily, like a child who was asked to do a chore. Before Neku could find a clean enough shirt and shorts to toss to him, Josh had already peeled off his shirt and was standing, arms crossed, waiting.

"Thank you," Joshua said, catching the clothes gracefully. He kept his eyes locked onto Neku's bare chest. He really wasn't as scrawny as one would think, though you can't tell underneath all the baggy clothes he wears.

"What are you lookin' at?" Neku said, clearly beyond annoyed at this point.

"N-nothing," Joshua stuttered, a rare occurrence for him. He quickly regained himself as he pulled on the clothes, turned away from Neku this time. He couldn't help but notice how the shirt smelt like Neku's room, which smelt a bit like Neku himself. Strange, human scents…

"I know that's a load of bullshit, by the way," Neku said as he pulled a shirt over his head and sat down on his bed.

"Um…what?" Joshua asked cautiously.

"That shit about your parents being in Italy and you not having a place to stay," Neku said, as though it were obvious. "I mean, do you even have parents? Just why the hell are you here?"

"Well after my big game and my plan to destroy Shibuya," Joshua said with a smirk, his wit returning to him. "The big guys up above decided to send me on a little mandatory vacation to, what was it they said? 'Think about what my job really is.' Hee hee. Ridiculous, I know. But I obliged. A vacation is a vacation." He shrugged and sat down carefully on the air mattress.

"Right," Neku said slowly, still trying to process the fact that there were people who were _above_ Joshua.

"There's a whole network of people above me, Neku," Joshua giggled.

"Would you stop doing that? I hate it," Neku said, shifting around on his bed, attempting to find a comfortable spot to sit.

"Hm?" Josh looked up.

"Reading my mind," Neku said angrily. "It's annoying…and not fair."

"Reading your mind right now is nothing, Neku," Joshua's violet eyes glinted as he spoke. "You're too guarded…too alert. I can really only read what you're thinking at the exact moment you're thinking it."

"Uh, yeah, that's what I hate," Neku rolled his eyes. "I just said that, you asshole."

"Hee hee…you should be lucky I can't dig any deeper right now…," Joshua smirked. "Like I did before…"

"You…w-what are you talking about?" Neku felt his face go pale. The nausea that Joshua caused him was increasing, and he was afraid of throwing up all over the kid right now.

"Oh, nothing to worry about, dear," Josh giggled, his smirk turning into a chaotic grin. He laid down carefully and pulled the blanket up to his neck so that only his silvery hair was visible. "Good night, sleep tight, don't let the Reapers bite!"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The sunlight peeking through the window was soft enough not to wake Neku, at least not entirely. It brought him to an awareness that lead to lucid dreaming. His dream had been about the Reaper's Game (of course). He and Shiki were partners again, though she looked like herself this time. In the moment he realized he was dreaming, Neku told Shiki to stop chasing after the Noise. He brought her close to hug her, like they did when they had been reunited, only this time, Neku pressed his lips to hers. It wasn't as sweet as he imagined her real kiss to be, but it was good enough for the dream. Neku continued to kiss her as long as he could keep a grip on the dream, but it was slowly fading away.

"Ugh…you know, you don't look quite as charming first thing in the morning," Joshua's prissy voice permeated through what remained of the dreamy state.

"Unh…mmm," Neku mumbled as he rolled over, trying to get comfortable and drift back asleep so he could continue the pleasant dream.

There was a strange sensation in his head. It didn't feel quite like dreaming, but it was something other than his own conscious thoughts. Fear struck him; was this Joshua's doing? Was he reading his mind? Imprinting him? Neku tried to pull away from the grasp of Joshua's mind, but he wasn't strong enough. In the dream-like state, Neku's mind forcibly replayed the kiss with Shiki over and over again. Suddenly, Shiki disappeared from the picture. Neku felt himself kissing the air, and embarrassed, he willed himself to stop, though it was no use. He felt himself being watched- by Joshua? – and just then, dozens of Noise appeared. Neku wanted to scream, he tried to, but was suffocating, choking on air.

"I'll make it stop if you get up, Neku," chimed Joshua in a singsong voice.

With all his strength, Neku forced his eyes to open. Still breathing heavily, Neku looked at the Composer's evil grin as he struggled to pull himself from the mental grip.

"Ah, look who's finally awake," Joshua smirked as he tilted his head.

"Why?" Neku found himself asking the same question he always asked when faced with the Composer. _Why…_

"Well, you were disgusting me, slobbering all over your pillow and such," Joshua shrugged as his sadistic smirk grew. "So I decided to see what inside your mind was so enthralling that it had you _moaning_."

Neku felt his face burn. Not thinking straight in his tired and pissed off state, he lunged at Joshua. He easily pinned the Composer down with his knees and towered over him. The moment his fist hit Joshua's face, Neku felt immediate satisfaction. Maybe all he had to do was punch Josh in the face every now and then to keep himself sane.

"Stop screwing with me, Josh!" Neku yelled in a raspy voice. He punched at him again, but this time, his fist was stopped by the Composer's hand. In one swift motion, Joshua pushed Neku off of him and stood up. The action surprised Neku. _The little prick is stronger than he looks._

"I would advise you not to pick a fight that you cannot win, Neku Sakuraba," Joshua said, his tone more ridged than it had ever been before.

"You kidding?" Neku laughed as he got to his feet. "I could kick your prissy ass with my eyes closed."

"I am the sole ruler of Shibuya, Neku," Joshua said as he approached. "I am a monarch…the Composer." He closed the space between them until his face was inches from Neku's. Joshua whispered, "I am a god."

Neku stared into the cold violet eyes of the Composer, contemplating his next move while trying to ignore the increasingly warm air between them. He could hear his own heartbeat pulse in his chest, and wondered if Joshua could hear it too. He wondered if it sounded like anger or fear, like adrenaline or intimidation. Unexpectedly, Neku's phone buzzed from its place on the desk. Carefully, he decided to slink away from the Composer to reach his phone. A slick smirk appeared on Joshua's face as he considered himself the victor of their little fight.

Neku flipped his phone open to see a text message from Shiki. "Meet at Hachiko at 2! xoxo Shiki" Neku couldn't help his face burning red as he recalled his dream from earlier. He snapped his phone shut and squinted at the clock on the wall. He had about two hours until he had to leave, which would be plenty of time.

"You're a god, huh?" Neku mocked dryly. "A god who got forcibly sent on a vacation to the RG."

The Composer crossed his arms and looked down at Neku. "And you've accomplished so much in your little life, hmm?" he giggled. "What, making new _friends_? How cute."

"At least I have friends," Neku muttered. He rummaged through his closet, trying to find something suitable to wear.

Joshua watched him, wondering what he meant. Joshua had friends too…although, the Angles he associated with were all paid to stick closely to him. Even Hanekoma, his job being to keep the Composer in line…he probably wouldn't stick around Joshua if he wasn't being paid to. Joshua looked up at Neku again, who was changing his clothes. Neku was a friend, wasn't he? Why else would he deal with him? Joshua brought a hand up to his cheek bone, which stung from when Neku had punched him. Maybe they weren't friends…maybe all Neku did was just deal with him.

Joshua shook his head, wishing the petty human thoughts to leave. Being in this body must have been making him feel like this…so _emotional_. But still, if that were true, this was going to be a rough three weeks being in a teenage body once again.

"I'm going to meet up with my friends," Neku said, interrupting the Composer's thoughts. "You are _not_ coming with me."

"And why can't I?" Joshua giggled, trying to pull himself back from his introverted state. "Aren't I your friend too, Neku?"

Neku didn't answer. He just stared at the Composer with his deep blue eyes and blank expression. Joshua looked into Neku's mind.

_He's kidding, right? After I just punched him in the face, he thinks we're friends? Maybe if you didn't screw with me so much, Josh, then maybe…_

"Hee hee," Joshua forced a laugh. "I'd rather not, anyways. I've got to stop back home and get some of my things. As much as I would love to keep wearing your clothes every day."

"…Right," Neku finally said. "I better not see you again until later."

"Who are you to be giving me orders?" the Composer grinned.

"Listen here, Yoshiya," Neku said as he closed in. Joshua felt his stomach flip at the sound of his full name. "You're stuck here in _my_ world, and you somehow weaseled your way into _my_ house, so you will listen to _me_. You got that, Mr. Composer?"

"Hmm, a little pushy, are we?" Joshua sat down on Neku's bed as he sighed.

"Shut up," Neku retorted. "And stop reading my mind. Or I'll punch your pretty little face again." Neku pulled his shoes on and leaned against the wall to tie them.

"Why can't I read your mind? You hardly ever say what you're thinking," Joshua shrugged. "I think it's only fair."

"What would be fair is if I could read _your_ mind," Neku said. _With all the cryptic fucking puzzles that come out of your mouth, I never know what you're planning._

"You really want to look into my mind?" Joshua sighed. "Get your Player Pin."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Neku had almost forgotten about his Player Pin, that he had woken up with it again. He picked up the shorts that he was wearing the day before and dug through the pockets until he found it. It felt electric in his hand again. He could feel the power of the UG pulsing through it. Could it really make him read Joshua's mind?

"Now just concentrate, and scan me like you would in the UG," the Composer instructed.

Though he was skeptical, Neku did as he was told. _Trust your partner, right? _He gripped the pin tightly in his palm, concentrating on the pulsating electricity. He felt its power spread from the pin to the whole room, engulfing Joshua. Neku saw the word that was the door to Josh's thoughts- 'Memories.' He supposed that memories were better than nothing. He took in a deep breath and dove into the Composer's mind.

**_There was rain pouring down, so much that it was almost impossible to see. The flashing red and blue lights of the police cars shone through the sheet of rain. He was scared, and cold. He hadn't put on any shoes, which was stupid. He was so stupid… _**

**_Through the mangled mess of the rain and blood and broken bits of the car, he could see the two Souls rise up and shine brightly. There they were, his parents, ascending to the other world that was invisible to everyone who didn't reside there…everyone except him. That world full of music and dancing neon creatures, where the dead spent seven days fighting for their Souls. _**

**_Joshua had been able to see this other world for as long as he could remember, but he did not speak of it. He knew it wasn't normal. He knew that _****he****_ wasn't normal. Life was so unforgivably dull compared to this other, shiny world. He had been watching the game for years, discovering its rules and inner workings. The Players, the Reapers…it was all so enticing. _**

**_Somebody was trying to talk to him, but he ignored them, keeping his gaze on his parents' Souls. Maybe if they made it and came back to life, he could tell them about his ability, and they would believe him… But just as the thought came to him, a large Noise swam towards his parents' Souls. No, no, they can't get erased like that… He wanted to close his eyes, but he couldn't stop watching as they were erased from existence. They were gone…they were gone forever…_**

The memory faded away, and another one flew towards Neku. He gripped on to it and opened it up.

**_He didn't want to make a mess, but this was probably the most efficient way of doing it… He pulled off his shirt and leaned over the sink. There was no purpose in getting it on the floor, he didn't want to make the clean up too much of a job for whoever would be doing it. Taking in a deep breath, he pressed the cold knife to his wrist. It stung more than anything, but it the pain wasn't too bad. He pushed it deeper into his skin and brought it down slowly, making a clean, straight line down the length of his forearm. His hands began to shake, but he did his best to ignore it. _**

**_Blood began to stream out, more quickly than he imagined it would. Soon, this dull world would be gone, and he would be embraced by the music and the neon and the dancing creatures; he would play the game and win and become a Reaper, and live in that majestic world forever. He closed his eyes and let the blood rush out of his arm. Blindly, he flipped on the water to help wash the blood down the sink. He tried to breathe evenly, though he was shaking terribly now._**

**_The door swung open and a girl stood there, frozen with fear as she stared at him. She yelled his name, but he was too far gone to hear her. He was slipping away from life, slowly…slowly…it wasn't fast enough. He picked up the knife again, but his hand was stopped by the girl. She threw the knife to the ground and held on to Joshua, keeping him from collapsing. _**

**_The ambulance arrived quickly, and the paramedics wrapped up his arm and pumped his lungs full of oxygen to keep him alive until they reached the hospital. All the way there, the girl was holding his hand, begging him to stay with her. He didn't want to, all he wanted to do was slip away…_**

The memory fell away, leaving Neku shaken. He had no idea that Joshua's life was so…sad. Sure, he was a real prissy jerk, but maybe his tortured life was the reason why he acted that way. Neku couldn't believe that he was actually feeling sorry for the Composer. Still inside Joshua's mind, Neku searched around for another memory, and one flew his way.

**_Sanae Hanekoma looked down at him with a sympathetic smile. It made him nervous, and he crossed his arms to hide his scars. But Hanekoma grabbed his arms and brought them down. He said that it was okay, that he understood what it was like. Joshua was sure that the man was lying. But he revealed to him his true form as wings sprouted from his shoulders. _**

**_Joshua stared in awe and jealousy. But he grew on Hanekoma, trusting him and allowing him to help. There were bad days, though. Joshua would cry, unable to take the pain of the RG any longer. He would find a knife and reopen his scars, but Hanekoma would stop him. He would patch up his wrists and hold Joshua close. Being held felt so nice, so comforting…it made him feel safe. He held on to life for a little longer before he slipped away from Hanekoma and finally reached the other side._**

The memory faded slowly, falling away. Neku felt a dark memory near the back of Joshua's mind. He reached for it before he was forced into a different one.

**_Heat, and sweat…unnecessary breathing, but the breathing was heavy, and welcome in his ear. The hands on him were hungry, searching. He wished that he didn't wear a shirt with buttons, because it took too long to take off. Eventually, it came off. His partner kissed roughly as he ran his hands over Joshua's chest. There were still too many clothes. His shaking hands removed the Angel's shirt, and begged him to come closer. _**

**_They kept going, moving faster, with more rapid movements and harsher kisses. He didn't mind the roughness. He welcomed the angry, fearful hardness of the fellow Angel as he was pushed against the wall. It was too dark to see, which he also liked. He didn't want his scars to be visible…_**

The stream of the memory cracked and shattered, and Neku was forced out of Joshua's mind. He gripped his head and dropped the Player Pin to the ground. The electricity was gone, and everything was seemingly normal again. He tried to catch his breath. Being forced out of someone's mind hurt more than he thought it would.

"Ugh…," Joshua sighed, also trying to catch his breath. "I…y-you weren't supposed to go there…"

"It's…uh," Neku recalled the last memory, his face reddening as it replayed in his mind. "Sorry, I didn't know…you were, uh…"

"That was…a long time ago," Joshua said. While it was technically true, that particular memory was from years ago, he had been in similar situations frequently since then.

_A long time ago? How young was he?! _ Neku pressed his hands to the sides of his head as it was beginning to throb. He was still trying to process all of the information about Joshua's past, and it was all so confusing. There was one thing that stuck with him, though, and that was the sympathy he felt for the Composer. Joshua really had been alone all his life…and his suicidal tendencies and embarrassment were a surprise to discover too.

"Hee hee, you must remember that I'm much older than I look," Joshua quipped, having regained his composure now. "I can very well handle being with a few Angels."

"I…don't think I want to hear about that," Neku said without looking up.

"Aren't you even a little curious?" Joshua chimed, smirking.

"N-no," Neku stuttered, trying to get the images out of his mind. "Not at all."

"Well, the offer's always there," Josh shrugged. "Anyway, you got to read my mind, so are you satisfied now?"

"I guess…," Neku looked down at the Composer, and could only picture the sad little boy he saw in the memories. "I had no idea you had been through so much."

"It's in the past," he said, shrugging again. Though there as a small tint of sadness in his eyes as he spoke. Joshua stood up and peeled off his shirt, dressing in the clothes he wore the previous day. "Don't you have to be somewhere?"

Neku glanced up at the clock to see that it was almost time to meet Shiki. "Shit," he said as he ran out the door. Feeling the need to remind Joshua that his friends were not allowed to see him, he added, "Don't follow me!"


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Shiki!" Neku yelled as he ran up to the statue where Shiki was sitting. He paused before her to catch his breath. "Sorry I'm late."

"No problem, Neku," Shiki smiled. She stood up and smoothed out the pale pink dress she was wearing.

"Was I, uh, supposed to dress up?" Neku looked self-consciously down at himself. He had on a plain black t-shirt and a pair of shorts that may or may not have been clean. Instinctively, he reached for his headphones, which rested around his neck.

"You look fine," she laughed. "Well, do you want to get something to eat?"

"Sure," he answered, letting his hands rest in his pockets. "But where Rhyme and Beat?"

"Oh, I didn't tell them to come," Shiki blushed as she spoke. "I thought maybe just you and me could hang out for a while."

Neku felt his face grow warm. He brought his hand to the back of his head and looked up at the statue, trying not to think of the dream he had earlier. "Y-yeah, that's cool," he said, trying to sound indifferent.

The ramen shop was surprisingly busy for once, so Shiki had suggested that they go to Wildkat instead. Neku agreed, thinking that it would be nice to see Mr. H. again. He had to thank him for all his help during the games, even if he had to pay for an overpriced cup of coffee. The place was completely empty, as usual.

"Hey, kids!" Hanekoma greeted them as they walked in the door. "Didn't expect to see you back so soon, I would've made some fresh soup! For you, Phones, only 600 yen. But I'll give ya the stuff from yesterday for only 550!"

"Haven't changed a bit," Neku sighed as he and Shiki sat at the counter.

"Hey Mr. H. How have you been?" Shiki smiled.

"Eh, pretty busy…that last set of games was rough, well, you kids know that," Hanekoma laughed a little. "I've been working on keeping the new temp Composer in line, which is always a challenge when you've got fresh meat."

"A new Composer?" Shiki asked, clearly confused.

Hanekoma nodded as he placed two cups of coffee on the counter for them. "Yeah, Joshua's been suspended," he said as he set down a crystal glass bowl filled with sugar cubes. "I haven't seen him in a few days, but he's somewhere in the RG."

Neku dropped a few cubes of sugar into his coffee and watched them dissolve into the blackness. He picked up the hot cup and took a sip, burning his tongue. He didn't care, though. He just had to keep quiet about Joshua. If Shiki found out that the Composer was currently his roommate, well…

"J-Joshua is…here?" Shiki stuttered. She clutched her coffee cup, the scorching heat of it not phasing her at all.

"Yeah, that was his suspension order," Hanekoma explained as he poured himself a cup. "Three weeks in the RG to think about what he's done and get straightened out. The punishment isn't too severe, so that's good. If he had ended up destroying Shibuya, they probably would've stripped him of his wings and made him a lower level Reaper."

Hanekoma laughed at the idea, because apparently Joshua being a low level Reaper was hilarious…Neku had to admit, though, seeing Josh in one of those red hoodies would be an entertaining sight. Neku picked up another cube of sugar and rolled it between his fingers before dropping it into the cup. Suddenly, he remembered the question that had been burning him up yesterday.

"Mr. H, why did Joshua decide not to destroy Shibuya?" Neku asked.

"Well, Phones," Hanekoma looked down at him, more serious than he usually was. "I really can't answer that for you. You'll have to ask Josh for the answer to that one."

"But…he didn't tell you?" Neku stood up, getting frustrated. "You were there, when he shot me…you two must have gone off after that, how can you not know?"

Silence hung in the air. Neku knew he shouldn't have yelled, and feeling guilty, he sat back down, staring into his coffee. The café door swung open and two girls walked in. They sat at the counter a few seats away from Neku and Shiki, and Hanekoma attended to them.

"Neku…," Shiki whispered.

"What?" he hissed. He really wasn't in the mood to talk now, still frustrated with Hanekoma, and pissed at Joshua.

"I think those girls are Players," Shiki said. Neku looked up at them. One of them looked to be about his age, and the other looked a few years older. The older girl had her arm around the other as they spoke to Hanekoma. The younger girl was looking down at something in her hand…it was a Player Pin.

"You're right," Neku said, sitting up straighter. He wished he hadn't left his own Player Pin at home. He didn't like the idea of those girls scanning him and reading his thoughts like Joshua constantly did. Having that pin with him would stop other Players from being able to scan him. The girl's eyes widened, and she looked up at him. _Damn…did she read me?_ Neku looked back down at his coffee, feeling uneasy.

"Are you okay, Neku?" Shiki whispered in between sips of coffee.

"Y-yeah, just fine," he lied.

"Is it them?" she asked, glancing up at the girls. "I understand it must make you nervous, Neku, but that's no reason not to be friendly. Besides, I'm sure they could use some advice from an expert like you."

"I am not gonna just go up and start talking to strangers," Neku said as he clutched his headphones. If Shiki weren't there, he would put them over his ears and blast music through them, but he knew that would just upset her. Having them around his neck as a security blanket would have to do for now.

Shiki sighed and stood up, pulling Neku along with her. Just as Hanekoma went into the back of the shop to get whatever the girls had requested, she dragged Neku over to them. "Hi there," she smiled sweetly. "My name is Shiki, and this is Neku. We're partners."

"Partners?" the older girl asked, hitching an eyebrow.

"Not like that…," Neku said as he straightened up and pulled his arm away from Shiki's grasp.

"You two are Players, aren't you?" Shiki asked, her voice full of innocence.

Neku never wanted to hide his face as much as he did now. Or better yet, just disappear from existence. Shiki could be so embarrassing, always talking to strangers and trying to help them out. It was a sweet quality in her, but sometimes it just got out of hand. Like now, for instance…

"Yeah," the younger girl said as she sat up straight. "But you two aren't."

"How do you know about the game?" the older girl asked defensively. "Are you Reapers?"

"No, no!" Shiki waved her arms in the air as she denied their claim. "We've been through the game before, and we won. We came back to life."

_We didn't exactly win, Shiki…_ Neku sighed and avoided eye contact with any of them as he shoved his hands into his pockets.

"Wow…that's impressive," the older girl said. "Well, my name is Mai, and this is my partner Kairu."

"It's nice to meet you both," Shiki smiled as she shook Mai's hand. "We just wanted to tell you that if you've got any questions about the game, we would be happy to help."

_Great, now she's offering our services as guides through the Reaper's Game?! This is getting ridiculous…I had hardly any help through three games in a row, and I survived. These girls can get through one game by themselves. _Neku gazed out the window as he thought, finding himself missing the taste of his coffee.

"Three games?" Kairu asked, staring up at Neku.

_Shit. _Neku looked down at her. "Uh, yeah," he tried to respond. "Kind of."

"How did that happen?" Kairu questioned.

"It's a long story…," he said, turning away again. "Anyway, you heard me. I survived, so you guys can too. Just, ya know, trust your partner…"

Neku felt Shiki's hand intertwine with his, her fingers wrapping around and grasping his tightly. She smiled down at the girls. "And never stop trusting your partner," she added. Neku felt himself blushing, and he squeezed Shiki's hand back.

Just then, Hanekoma returned to them carrying two plates of muffins. He set them down in front of Mai and Kairu. "There ya go, ladies," he said with a wink. He looked up and saw Neku and Shiki, their hands still locked together. "So, Phones, you never told me-"

"Can it," Neku said, dropping Shiki's hand. He crossed his arms as he walked back to his spot at the counter, where his coffee, which was now at a drinkable temperature, waited for him.

"Aight, no need to get touchy," Hanekoma raised his hands up.

Shiki returned to her seat next to Neku and picked up her coffee as well. Neku couldn't tell if she was upset that he had left her standing there. He did feel guilty about it. Quickly, he remembered the reason why he wanted to come to Wildkat in the first place. He sipped his coffee and looked up at Hanekoma.

"Look, Mr. H, I wanted to say thanks for all the help you gave us during the game," Neku said, wanting to get it out.

"Don't mention it, kid," Hanekoma grinned. "It's what I do."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

After walking Shiki back to her apartment building, and an awkward (at least for him) hug goodbye, Neku was returning home. The sun was slipping down behind skyscrapers, and street lights were beginning to flicker on. His eyes stung from exhaustion. Going through Joshua's mind earlier had taken a lot of energy out of him.

_Josh is messed up… _Neku felt the need to remind himself. _Really messed up… _Between witnessing the Composer's tortured childhood, his attempted- and eventually successful- suicide, touching moments with Hanekoma, and a rather explicit sex scene with an Angel (which Neku wished he could forget), Neku found himself even more confused about Joshua.

He knew now that it wasn't Joshua's fault that he was a prissy psychopath, his life had made him that way, but somehow that didn't allow Neku to dismiss all that the Composer was guilty of. Perhaps that was fair, since Joshua never actually apologized for any of it. But then, why did Neku still feel obligated to put up with Josh? All of the conflicting thoughts were making Neku's headache return, and so he put his headphones over his ears and played a quiet, calming song.

When he returned to his home, he discovered that his mother had to work a late shift that night, which was half expected with her being an emergency room nurse with changing hours every other day. That meant he was alone for supper, since his father was still on a month long business trip. He was also glad to discover that Joshua hadn't made it back to his home yet, which gave Neku some alone time. He reached into the refrigerator and grabbed the first thing he saw, which happened to be a can of beer and a container with leftover pizza, and headed to his room.

Neku didn't normally drink alcohol, being only fifteen years old, but he decided that it might help calm his mind and relieve his throbbing headache. He cracked open the top of the can and sucked up the froth that bubbled out. As he ate the cold, rubbery pizza, he savored the silence of his home. The silence didn't last nearly long enough, though, as when Neku swallowed down the last of the beer, he heard a knock at the door.

Sighing internally, he already knew who it would be. He stood up and went to the kitchen, being careful to avoid the window that was on the front door so that he would not be seen. Neku opened the fridge and cracked open another can, this time pouring half of the frothy, bitter alcohol down his throat. As he stood and drank, he contemplated not opening the door.

_What would Josh do, phase through the wall? Hah…not while he's stuck being human. _Neku laughed out loud at himself, the buzzing of the alcohol reaching his ears. _I hope you can hear me, Joshua. Mr. Composer, the god of Shibuya…some god. Getting sent away and forced to live in the RG, yeah, real __**godly**__, Josh. _Neku snorted at himself again, really hoping that the Composer was reading his thoughts through the door.

There was knocking at the door again, this time louder and angrier. _How can Joshua's girly hands make such a noise? _Neku grinned as he swallowed down the last half of the beer and crumpled the aluminum can in his hand. He tossed it in the trash on his way to the door, and tried his best not to add a _–crunch-_ in mimicry of a certain past Game Master. Sure enough, Joshua stood outside, arms crossed in discontent, with a bag slung perfectly over his shoulder. Neku stifled a laugh as he unlocked the door and opened it.

"Who is it?" he grinned, poking his head out the door.

"Ugh," Joshua snarled at him. "You smell like a drunken lush." He pushed his way past Neku and closed the door behind him.

"Did you hear me?" Neku asked, no longer smiling, but still feeling giddy.

"Did I hear your pathetic, half-baked insults, you mean?" Joshua retorted as he walked across the kitchen. "Yes, I did. And I have to say, I am not impressed, Neku."

Neku frowned as he followed Joshua through the kitchen. He didn't care what that prick thought anyways. On his way back to his room, he snagged another beer, knowing that he would need a third crutch to deal with Joshua for the rest of the night. He silently thanked an unknown deity (one besides Joshua) that his mother didn't keep track of the alcohol in the house.

"Although you think I'm lying about my studies, I do have some reading that I need to catch up on," Joshua said as he sat down on the air mattress in Neku's room and opened up a book he had been carrying. "So if you wouldn't mind keeping as quiet as you normally do, I would appreciate it, dear."

"Dear," Neku growled as he flopped down on his own bed, nursing his drink. "Deer…did you know that Shiki doesn't eat meat?"

"Hee hee," Joshua giggled. "Thinking an awful lot about Shiki lately, haven't you?"

In his drunken state, Neku was more open and less embarrassed. He shrugged and sipped from the can, almost surprised at himself for not blushing at the accusation. So what if he did think about Shiki? That didn't mean anything. There was nothing wrong with that.

"Did you indulge her with the details of your wet dream?" Josh giggled again, clearly not concentrating much on whatever he was reading.

"It was not a…just shut up!" Neku yelled. This time, his face was turning a shade of red. "You need to stay outta my head."

"But you make it so _easy_, Neku," the Composer chimed as he carefully turned a page in his book.

Neku felt his face burn again, but he did his best to ignore it. He swallowed down what remained his drink and tossed the can under his bed, making a mental note to take care of it later. Flopping down on the bed, he let the feeling of the buzz overtake his body. It was relaxing, and he noticed that his headache was gone, too. After ten minutes of silence, he turned to Joshua.

"Why didn't you destroy Shibuya?" Neku asked in a soft voice.

"I would rather not talk about work, dear, it's quite stressful," the Composer chimed back, too enthralled in his book to even look up.

"Josh, I'm serious," Neku said, on the verge of getting annoyed. "Yoshiya…"

Something about the use of his full name tugged at the Composer's heart. Joshua paused his reading, but did not look up. He took in a deep breath and sighed loudly. "Honestly, Neku?" he breathed. "You changed my mind."

"_I_ did…?" Neku didn't quite believe that. He sat up and leaned sideways in his bed, looking more intently at the Composer as he waited for a full explanation.

"Yes," Joshua said, his violet eyes returning to reading. Clearly he didn't want to talk about it anymore, but Neku wasn't satisfied with that half-baked answer.

Neku leaned over his bed and grabbed his Player Pin from the floor, from where he had dropped it earlier. Again, it's electricity stung in his hand. He clutched it tightly, trying his best to concentrate. The pin's power spread throughout the room, but there was no visible door to Joshua's thoughts this time.

"I'm not just going to let you in, Neku," Joshua giggled. "You could at least buy me dinner first."

"Do you have to try to be that ambiguously gay, or does it come naturally?" Neku sighed in defeat as he dropped the pin back to the floor.

"It's just who I am, dear," Joshua smirked, still not looking up from his reading.

Neku pulled his shirt off and threw it across the room before flopping back down on his bed. He stared up at the wall next to him, reading all of the posters he had put up from over the years. Most of them were from bands, the pictures on the posters being abstract digital art with the name of an album across the side. There were a few posters with replications of CAT's artwork, too, which Neku enjoyed the most. He decided that he would start working on his own artwork again, too.

"You know, Neku," Joshua said, setting his book down. "You really shouldn't drink. It'll ruin your little brain. Not to mention it leaves you vulnerable to outside influences."

"You're just mentioning that now?" Neku said, uninterested in the Composer's opinions. He knew it was bad for him, which is why he almost never drank. Today was an exception.

"And why's that?" Joshua asked, reading Neku's thoughts. "Is it because of me?"

Neku stifled a laugh, but noticed a glint of sadness in Joshua's eyes. Was it sadness? Maybe it was concern…either way, why would Joshua care? Neku decided to ignore him, figuring that the Composer could simply read his mind for answers either way. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone and looked at the text Shiki had sent him earlier. He smiled at the little x's and o's that she put at the end of the message. Forgetting for a moment that Joshua was still there with him, Neku sighed to himself, "I should've kissed her…"


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Joshua scribbled so quickly across the paper that his handwriting was close to illegible. He didn't care, though. He knew that he had to write this information down before it escaped his mind. Flipping open a book, he ran his fingers along the lines, searching for one sentence that he had forgotten. Doing research like this was difficult when he was in his human form. Every movement he made was much slower than it would be in a Higher Plane. Even reading had become a difficult task, as his human eyes could only focus on one sentence at a time.

Over the past few hours, his eyes stung from exhaustion, but he refused to let himself rest. Sleeping was such a weak state, and he hated it. He hated being human, being vulnerable and weak, and unable to use the full potential of his mind. He was thankful to still have his ability to scan and read people, though. Most all other of his Angel gifts were gone, including his increased brain power.

"If dark matter had been used, then…no, no, it wouldn't be containable…," Joshua muttered to himself as he scribbled across the notebook, crossing out a sentence he had just written. "Damn it…I know I can figure this out…"

The Composer pulled a different book out from a pile he had made on the floor and flipped through it, skimming the pages as he did so. He took in the information and kept in his mind whatever seemed important. "I can do this…," Joshua whispered to himself. His hands began to shake, causing him to drop his pen. "D-damn…"

Something burned in his eyes, and as he tried to blink it away, a few tears escaped and rolled down his cheeks. Being stuck as a teenage human was bad enough, not being as fast or as mentally capable as he usually was, but now he was _crying_? This was just unacceptable.

He silently thanked Neku for being in a deep, drunken sleep. If he had seen Joshua like this… The Composer shivered at the at the thought of his weakness being displayed. He paused and took in a deep breath. Joshua knew that he had no other choice but to turn to Hanekoma for help.

"Why…?" Neku muttered in his sleep. The Composer looked up to him through the darkness as he wiped the tears from his face. His left cheek was still tender from when Neku punched him.

"Mmm…Sh-Shiki," Neku breathed. Joshua crawled up to the side of the bed, relieved that Neku was undoubtedly in a deep sleep. A few orange locks of hair hung over his eyes. Joshua reached up and brushed them to the side of his face, causing Neku to twitch, but then settle back into sleep.

Although intrigued, Joshua decided not to delve into Neku's dreams the way he did before. Neku didn't like that, and he could somehow tell when the Composer was present in his head. Toying with the boy's emotions was entertaining, though. But, Joshua had to admit, although he could be crude and angry sometimes, Neku was a good kid…

_Why can't I find somebody like you, Neku? _Joshua thought sadly. _Somebody who wants something other than sex… An Angel who doesn't just want me because I'm the Composer…_

"J-Joshua…?" Neku breathed. Joshua picked up his head a little, looking more intently at the sleeping orange haired boy. "Josh…ua… Why…?"

"Yes, Neku?" the Composer whispered lightly, hoping to hear more.

"Wh-why, Josh…," Neku mumbled. "Why…are you so fucking creepy?"

"W-what?" Joshua backed away, feeling his face blush.

Neku opened one of his eyes half way to squint at him. "Quit watching me sleep," he said with a raspy voice. "It's really fuckin' creepy."

"I was…I was just making sure you hadn't died of alcohol poisoning, you little lush," Joshua replied with a snide tone as he turned away.

"Whatever," Neku groaned as he rolled over. Within minutes, the boy was snoring again.

Joshua gathered up his books and notebook, putting them into his bag and slinging it over his shoulder. He stood up and glanced out the window to see that the sunrise would be approaching soon. As quietly as he could, he stepped out of Neku's room and through the house. Joshua closed the front door behind him silently as he left, on his way to see Sanae Hanekoma.


	10. Chapter 10

**_Hey there fans! I'm happy to see that people are enjoying my story :D _**

**_I just wanted to let you know that this will be a longer story with many chapters so hang in there with me!_**

**_Also, I'm going to be starting school next week so there will probably be a gap of time in between my posting of chapters. But I'll be writing as often as I can!_**

**_I love hearing feedback, if you've got things you really like or things you hate, I want to hear your opinions please! _**

**_Okay, enjoy! _**

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Chapter 10

It wasn't often that Rhyme was able to leave their apartment without her brother accompanying her, but in the mornings, when Beat was still fast asleep, she liked to go out by herself. Rhyme liked the morning air, which, even in the city, seemed so much more fresh than the rest of the day. As she walked cautiously along the sidewalk, careful to avoid the streets now, a lovely aroma caught her attention.

The smell of coffee hung all around Cat Street, its source being the Wildkat café, which belonged to Sanae Hanekoma. Rhyme didn't know this, of course; she didn't even know who Hanekoma was. And although she didn't enjoy coffee, the smell of it was almost as enticing as the smell of the morning air. As she stepped through the door of the café, she wondered if it was even open yet, for the place was completely empty.

"Hello?" Rhyme called, still standing in the doorway.

"We're open!" a man's voice called from a back room. "Go on and sit down, I'll be with ya in a moment."

Hesitant, Rhyme stayed where she was, deciding not to move until she saw the owner. She leaned against the doorframe, propping her foot to the door to keep it open. As she waited, she played with the pendant around her neck, her stomach rumbling at the smell of the coffee.

"You can have a seat," a voice told her.

Rhyme looked up for the source of the voice, which was different than the man who called to her before. Across the counter, sitting at the seat furthest away from the door sat a pale boy, who looked a bit older than she was, with his face buried in a book. She hadn't noticed him before, he seemed to blend in perfectly with the design of the café. He looked trustworthy enough, so Rhyme walked through the door and approached him.

"Hello," Rhyme smiled as she took a seat next to him. "I'm Raimu, but you can call me Rhyme."

"I know, dear," the boy said. He set down his book and picked up his cup of coffee, drinking down the entire thing. His thin, pale fingers tapped impatiently on the countertop as he flipped a page in his book.

"What are you studying?" Rhyme asked, her curiosity peaked by the strange boy.

The boy turned to look at her, his violet eyes seemingly lost in another world. He looked completely exhausted, and Rhyme could guess that the boy had stayed up all night. "Things beyond your wildest imagination," he smirked.

"Hey, another customer!" the owner chimed as he returned from the back room, a pot of coffee in his hand. The man stopped when he saw who the little blonde girl was, though. He lowered his shades as he set the pot of coffee down. "Aren't you a little young to be at a coffee shop?"

"I'll just have some orange juice, please," Rhyme smiled, digging through her pockets for loose yen coins.

"Please, save your money," the boy spoke up as he tapped Rhyme's arm. He pulled out a couple 500 yen pieces and tossed them to the owner. "This man overcharges, and I wouldn't want you to become another victim of his highway robbery."

The owner grinned sourly at the boy, but accepted the yen, placing it in his back pocket. He refilled the boy's coffee and went back to get Rhyme's juice.

"Make it a large," the boy called. "And throw in a muffin, make sure it's fresh, Hanekoma."

"Thank you. You didn't have to do that for me," Rhyme said, playing with the bendy straw that was stuck into the lid on her orange juice. The blueberry muffin, which was bigger than her fist, was still warm as it sat on the plate in front of her.

"Of course I did," the boy smirked as he set his coffee down after taking a long sip. "I kind of owe you."

"But we just met," Rhyme giggled softly.

"Of course we did…," the boy sighed, returning his attention to one of the many books he had laid out in front of him.

Rhyme's phone beeped in her pocket. After taking another sip of juice, she pulled it out and flipped it open to see a text message from her brother. 'Rhyme where u at?' She giggled to herself a little, for as she read it, she had imagined her brother's voice saying it. She typed back 'In the café on Cat Street. Care to join me?'

She knew that her brother wouldn't reply to her message, and that he would just show up to get her as soon as he could. Rhyme loved her brother more than anything, but sometimes he was a little too overprotective of her. Waiting for her brother's arrival, Rhyme managed to finish the entire giant muffin, as well as all of her orange juice.

"Thanks again," she said, smiling up at the strange boy.

"Don't mention it," he smirked, turning to her. "Like I said, I owed you."

Rhyme still didn't understand what the boy meant by that, but she dismissed it. He seemed genuinely nice, and it made her feel sad that he was alone here. The bell over the door rang out as Beat stepped through.

"Yo, Mr. H!" his voice boomed through the café.

"Already forgotten about me?" Rhyme giggled, sending a little wave to her brother.

"Course not," Beat said with a grin. "I knew you was safe here. Though we never told ya bout Mr. H. Heh."

Beat walked towards his sister, but stopped when he spotted the boy she was sitting next to. "Yo, Rhyme," his voice shook slightly as he beckoned his sister.

"Hm?" the boy looked up at him, and a smirk appeared across his face. "Oh, hello there."

"Listen you prissy ass, if you laid a hand on her, I finna mess you up so bad you gonna wish you never knew me," Beat yelled as he approached. With a hand on Rhyme's shoulder, he pulled his sister behind him.

"Is that supposed to be a threat?" the boy scoffed as he set down his book. He stood up and crossed his arms, looking unimpressed.

"Don't even start, pretty boy!" Beat yelled.

"Beat, calm down," Rhyme begged as she pulled at her brother's shirt. "He's a nice guy. He bought me breakfast."

"What'd ya do, poison her?" Beat yelled at the boy, ignoring his sister's pleas to calm down.

"I paid for the food, I didn't cook it," the boy giggled as she shrugged.

"Oh, that's it!" he yelled. Beat slammed his hand into the boy's chest and pushed him hard against the wall.

"Hey, hey, what's going on?" Hanekoma yelled as he ran in from the back room. He saw the scene before him: Beat about to pound Joshua's face in, Joshua seemingly unconcerned about his own physical safety as he egged Beat on, and Rhyme standing back not knowing what to do. "Alright, everyone just chill!"

Beat stopped his fist in midair, turning to look at Hanekoma. He let go of Joshua, shoving him aside as he did so, and turned away. "Why the hell's he here?" Beat demanded. "And why the hell did ya let him near Rhyme?"

"I don't recall doing anything wrong," Joshua shrugged. Suddenly faced with a vicious look from Beat, he smirked and added, "Today."

"What's going on here?" Rhyme questioned, approaching her brother again. "Beat?"

Beat looked down at his sister, her puppy dog eyes pulling at his heart. He put a hand on his sister's shoulder and gave her a small, sad smile. "Rhyme, that guy…," Beat turned to Joshua. "That's…uh…look, jus' don't worry bout it."

"Listen, Beat," Hanekoma spoke. "I've got to ask you guys to go. I'm closing up shop, got some things to do."

"Yeah, a'course Mr. H," Beat said, leading his sister to the door. "We was just leavin' anyway."

"Come on back any time, though," Hanekoma grinned. "I mean it."

"Yea, sure we will," he said, glancing back at Joshua.

Once they had left, the Composer took his seat again, readjusting his disheveled clothes. Hanekoma, looking less than impressed, took a seat next to him and sighed. "When are you going to learn?" he asked.

"I didn't do a single thing wrong," Joshua said as he flipped open his notebook. "That Neanderthal came at me. I didn't even throw a punch."

"You were encouraging him," Hanekoma said, turning to him. "You're human now, you've gotta watch yourself. If you get hurt, you can't just heal yourself. And I don't think you have enough money to pay off a hospital bill."

"That child would not have sent me to a hospital," scoffed the Composer. "Anyway, would you review this for me?"

Joshua held out his notebook to Hanekoma, who took it with a sigh. He removed his shades as he looked down and read it over. "What language is this written in?" he asked sarcastically.

"Ignore my terrible handwriting, please," Joshua said, sounding exhausted. "Just tell me if I've got the equation right."

Hanekoma set the notebook down on the countertop and looked intently at Joshua. "I don't understand why you're still trying to work through this," he said. "You can't do it. It's impossible."

"It is possible," the Composer said, taking his notebook back. "If you're not going to help me, then-"

"No, boss, I'll help," Hanekoma sighed. "Why do you wanna do it though? You decided before not to destroy Shibuya. Why are you still working on a plan to do it?"

"I don't want to destroy Shibuya," Joshua said as he stared down at his equation, tapping his pen against the paper. "I want to destroy the UG."


	11. Chapter 11

**_Hey everyone! Sorry it's been so long, but here's the next chapter! The story is starting to pick up, so follow along :)_**

**_Again, I love feed back, so if you've got any, please send your thoughts my way!_**

**_Thanks!_**

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Chapter 11

Beat slammed his fist against the table as he stood up. "So why didn't ya tell me if ya knew that prick was here?" he yelled.

Neku held his head in his hands, stricken with a worse headache than he had the day before. Shiki looked up at Beat, her face flushed with embarrassment. Everyone in the ramen shop was staring at them, and Beat didn't seem to care.

"I meant to tell you, I'm sorry," she said in a soft tone, hoping that Beat would calm down. "We only found out yesterday."

"That ain't no excuse," Beat said loudly, still angry. "Ya got cell phones, don't ya?"

"Please…don't…yell," Neku said in a harsh whisper. He pushed his headphones closer to his ears, hoping to block out some of the sound.

"I'll yell all I want," Beat said as he sat back down. "That asshole got near Rhyme, and I ain't happy bout it!"

"Well he didn't do anything to her, did he?" Shiki asked.

"He bought her breakfast," Beat muttered, staring down at his untouched bowl of curry and noodles.

"You're pissed…because Joshua…bought your sister breakfast," Neku stated.

"Can it, emo boy!" Beat said as he raised a fist.

"Well, Mr. H would never let Joshua do anything to hurt Rhyme," Shiki said, trying to calm the tension. "I don't think Josh would hurt her anyways."

"Whatevs," Beat said, seeming to quiet down now. He picked up his chopsticks and shoved a big bite of noodles in his mouth.

"Ugh," Neku pushed his own bowl of ramen away from himself, suddenly feeling nauseous. He wished that he was back in his bed, sleeping away the hangover that was pounding through his skull. He wished that Joshua hadn't gone to Hanekoma's café and seen Rhyme, thus pissing off Beat. Then Beat wouldn't have called Shiki, and Shiki wouldn't have came to Neku's house and forced him to get up. If Joshua had just stayed home, Neku could have been back in his bed, sleeping peacefully.

"I didn't tell Rhyme who he was," Beat finally said. "Josh, I mean. I never told her that was him."

"I think she'd be smart enough to figure that out for herself by now," Shiki said as she played with her chopsticks. "After you nearly crushed him."

"I dunno," he replied, setting his bowl down. "She's back at home right now. I told her to stay until I got back."

"Shiki is right, you know," Neku muttered. "Joshua wouldn't have hurt Rhyme."

"I don't trust him," Beat said as he stood up.

"Trust your partner," Neku hummed, still not looking up from the table. "You trust me, right?"

"Well…yeah, Phones, a'course I do," Beat said as he looked up at the ceiling, clearly embarrassed.

"Then believe me," Neku said, looking up at him. "Joshua wouldn't hurt her."

"Aight, Phones," Beat said sincerely. He dropped the money for his food onto the table. "I gotta get back to Rhyme. I'll catch ya later."

"See you, Beat," Shiki smiled, waving as he left. "That was real sweet of you, Neku," she said once Beat had left.

Neku shrugged, looking down again. "Do you want my ramen?" he asked, shoving the bowl her way.

"No thanks, I'm stuffed," she laughed.

"Ugh…," Neku gripped his head again. "I need to go home."

"Are you feeling okay?" Shiki put a hand on his shoulder, clearly concerned.

"Y-yeah," he lied. "I just think I'm gonna puke."

Neku and Shiki paid for their food and exited the ramen shop, Shiki having to guide him outside because he refused to look up from the ground. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his sweatshirt as they walked. His head was still throbbing, and he regrettably admitted to himself that Joshua was right, that he shouldn't have been drinking. He swore to himself that he wouldn't do it again.

"Thanks for walking me home," Neku said as they approached his home.

"No problem," Shiki said with a smile. "You should go rest, you don't look good."

"Yeah, I will…," he said, turning to her. "Uh, let me know when you're home? I just, I mean…with everything that's gone on, I just want to make sure you're safe."

"Of course," she smiled, her cheeks blushing slightly.

To Neku's surprise, he found that his bedroom door was still closed. _That must mean that Joshua is back… _Already dreading what the Composer was going to say to him, Neku reluctantly shoved the door open.

"You should really knock first," Joshua said as the door was opening.

"It's _my_ room, why should I-" Neku stopped short when he stepped into the room and saw Joshua.

The Composer was sitting on the floor, surrounded by books and papers. His shirt was wrapped around his wrist while he wrote on a notebook with his other hand. And on his chest, a nauseating yellow-green bruise was beginning to form. Joshua's eyes conveyed the usual ominous glint that they always did, though his face portrayed a look that Neku could only describe as agony.

"I really wasn't expecting you home so soon," Joshua said, turning his attention back to what he was writing. "I figured you would be out all day gossiping about me."

"I wasn't…we weren't really…," Neku tried. Every moment he looked down at the Composer brought a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"Relax, dear, it was only a joke," Joshua smirked. "Go on, sleep off your hangover. I'll try to work quietly."

"What happened to you?" Neku finally asked after a long minute of silence. "You're bleeding…"

"Hm?" Joshua looked down at his wrist to see that his shirt had become soaked with blood. "Oh, so I am." Then, as though it were nothing, he returned his attention back to whatever he was writing down.

Neku sat down on his own bed, his eyes glued to the Composer, unsure if what he was seeing was real or not. _Joshua…hurt? Bleeding? Is that even possible?_ The pounding in Neku's head seemed to get worse with every thought that passed through it. Silently, he laid down and fell asleep almost instantly.

Upon making sure that Neku was asleep, Joshua pulled the shirt off his wrist and smoothed it out. He hated having to put wrinkles in one of his best shirts, but it was necessary. He closed his notebook and sighed as he stood up. The Composer placed the precious notebook in the hands of his dear proxy and smiled down in a mournful way. Reaching into his bag, Joshua pulled out a shiny silver gun.

"I'm sorry to put you through this again," he sighed, and looked down at Neku, a smirk forming on his lips. "Well, I'm almost sorry."

The Composer points his gun at Neku's head and pulls the trigger.


End file.
